Rezoning requests in a growing region like southcentral Kentucky are often sources of contention as land is gobbled up by developers – with plans sometimes not welcomed by neighbors.

That is especially true in Bowling Green and Warren County, where growth is the one constant.

But while we have seen some highly controversial rezoning applications in recent years, the reality is that most are routine requests.

That’s why Bowling Green’s move last week to eliminate city commission votes on rezoning requests makes sense.

Commissioners on Tuesday unanimously approved use of an alternative zoning procedure. City Manager Jeff Meisel said it would improve efficiency as the city commission would no longer need to approve all zoning changes.

“This has always been available. We just haven’t taken advantage of it,” Meisel said. “Decisions made at (the planning commission) can just be the final decision.”

Currently, zoning applications are voted on by the City County Planning Commission and then forwarded to the city commission for rezonings within the city limits or to fiscal court for those in the county.

The city commission then holds two votes on the planning commission recommendation, a process that can take up to 90 days.

Meisel said under the new plan, the city commission would not hear the rezoning request or vote on it unless requested to do so within 21 days of the planning commission vote. If a request is not made, the planning commission vote is final.

The rezoning request process is difficult for the layperson to understand and is something that is typically ignored unless it impacts one directly.

The key takeaway from the city’s move last week is that residents still have a chance to oppose rezoning requests in the appropriate venue – meetings of the City County Planning Commission.

It as at those meetings that evidence and testimony is allowed to be presented. When either fiscal court or the city commission votes on rezoning decisions coming from the planning commission, the vote, by law, is supposed to be based only on what was presented at the planning commission meetings, making the votes by fiscal court and the commission largely symbolic. It often also leads to confusion as residents don’t understand why they can’t offer new testimony at commission meetings.

Importantly, the new process still allows members of the public to “challenge” planning commission rezoning decisions within the 21-day window, in which case the city board of commissioners will then have to vote on the recommendation. This adds an added layer of oversight in case there was a flawed planning commission decision.